Le Trésor de la Sierra Madre

Having had his day as an idolized star and romantic leading man, it was now time for Bogart to get down to the serious business of acting… For eighteen years it had usually been Bogart playing Bogart in various shadings… Now that Bogart was gone and in his place was an older and far less romantic figure, one who found new challenges and was able to meet most of them successfully… This new phase of his continued growth began with a story of three men in search of gold…

Although "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre" is indisputably one of Bogart's best films, it was co-star Walter Huston who won an Academy Award as did the movie's director and scenarist, John Huston…

Based on a novel by the mysterious B. Traven, the film told a riveting tale which explored the degenerative effects of encroaching greed, distrust, and hatred on three prospectors who team up to search for gold in Mexico…

Bogart's Fred C. Dobbs was an amazingly complex creation whose slow disintegration into paranoia was brilliant1y managed on camera… He is a born loser with no potential for change in sight… Suspicious, unfeeling, savage, and easily corruptible, he seems clearly destined for a tragic fate almost from our first meeting with him…

Tim Holt was also excellent as Bob Curtin, a man who, like Bogart, is tempted but whose conscience will not permit him to exercise his baser desires. (He could have let Bogart die in a cave-in, but saved him instead.) Young, impressionable, and unprepared, he has never seen the likes of a Fred C. Dobbs and he finds himself overwhelmed and uncertain as to how he will cope with Dobbs's rage and greed…

However, it is the director's father, Walter Huston, who literally stole the picture from both Bogart and Holt as he played Howard, a wise old toothless codger who knew all along what would happen and took it all in stride, kicking up his heels and having a marvelous time… Life can't surprise him any more… He's already had successes and failures enough for one lifetime… Like a faithful dog, he's along for the thrill of the hunt, and should there be another pot of gold at the end of this rainbow, well, that's just a bonus…

It is mainly the interaction of these three men from their first meeting and uneasy partnership through their final confrontation that made "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre" one of Warner Brothers' triumphs of the forties

Tampico sets the scene for the start of speculation, Fred C. Dobbs is out of cash and his luck is in cessation, but an encounter in flophouse, and big dreams emerge and arouse, as a plan is born with Howard, and a fellow who's called Curtin. Into hills laden with gold, our companions then embark, finding seams that come alive with golden riches to impart, building up substantial fortune, thinking soon they will be tycoons, but there's one who's trust is waning and has sores that start to smart. The journey back becomes a challenge to them all, as one by one the group is scattered, battered, stalled, will their work be well rewarded, will endeavours all be thwarted, either way, you will be engaged, and quite possibly enthralled.

Bogarts best performance.

Two penniless Americans (Humphrey Bogart and Tim Holt) during the 1920s in Mexico join with an old-timer (Walter Huston, the director's father) to prospect for gold. The old-timer accurately predicts trouble, but is willing to go anyway. The film is fictional, but presents a very realistic scenario: By the 1920s the violence of the Mexican Revolution had largely subsided, although scattered gangs of bandits continued to terrorize the countryside. The newly established post-revolution government relied on the effective, but ruthless, Federal Police, commonly known as the Federales, to patrol remote areas and dispose of the bandits. Foreigners, like the three American prospectors, were at very real risk of being killed by the bandits if their paths crossed. The bandits, likewise, were given little more than a "last cigarette" by the army units after capture, even having to dig their own graves first.

The film shows the Americans doing just about anything for money: drilling oil, digging for gold, begging and more. And once gold comes into the picture, the men who once claimed they were not greedy see things differently. Bogart actually goes mad, after he gets greedy and paranoid... during which he encounters a gila monster! The most memorable scene of this film involves the bandits, who don't need any "stinking badges". While the line is much more quotable in "Blazing Saddles", we couldn't have "Blazing Saddles" (or "UHF") without this film... just about everyone, even those who never saw or heard of "Sierra Madre", knows the badges line.

Humphrey Bogart's best film is probably "Casablanca", but this one features him in a nice, rough exterior. Yes, sometimes leading men have beards and are covered in dirt. Pretty boys do not stay pretty boys after digging in the hills, or at least that wouldn't be realistic. This film does a fine job trying to "keep it real", so we have to commend Huston not only on his directing, but his wonderful location scouting.

In the 1920's, labor was hard to find. If you happened to be a laborer, work was almost non existent. Indeed, if you were unemployed and in Mexico, your chances were dismal. Yet, these were the times, which attracted many South of the border. The place was barren, yet many a fortune could spring up directly before you, . . .if you were luckily enough to see it. That is the story behind this incredible film. The legend of El Dorado was only one of the many myths which lured the adventurous to Mexico, another was "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre." The gold of the Mother of Mountains was passed from father to son for generations. Thus when the film adaption was made, it was sure to be sculpted by men of vision. One such man is legendary John Huston who directed this film. Three common men are lured by the promise of discovering a lost treasure. The first is Fred C. Dobbs (Humphrey Bogart) a nice enough guy who wants only to be fair, but is hungry to 'strike it rich.' The second is Howard, (Walter Huston) as honest as you expect him to be and a man of considerable experience. The last is Bob Curtin (Tim Holt) who if given a chance, will use it. The trio make a PAC to share and share alike all the treasure they find. However, only Howard is aware of what the possession of Gold can do to a man. To find the treasure, they need the mountain, some hard work, a little luck. To bring it home, will require something only one of them possesses. The film is a Classic and is due to the combined talents of all the stars and the director. If you look closely, you'll see Robert Blake (Barreta) and John Huston in brief roles. ****

Some movies have certain scenes in them that hold the viewers interest more than others. However every single scene in this film holds the viewers interest. There is never a dull or lagging moment. Three down and outers who at one time in their lives were maybe up and comers strike out in search of a fortune or at least enough to live better than they have been.

While Humphrey Bogart gives a superb performance it is Walter Huston who turns in the greatest performance as the old prospector Howard. The scene in the Indian village where he helps to restore a comatose child is one of the most touching in all of film history and is done virtually without any dialog. Mexican character actor Alfonso Bedoya of course steals all the scenes he appears in and delivers his classic "Stinking Badges" line. (what person would dress up as a Bandito for a costume party and not want to look exactly like Bedoya's Gold Hat character?) This film probably should have been a little higher on AFI's top 100. A must see!